Six of the seven people standing for election in the constituency have explained what their priorities are should they win on 4th July

As a result of boundary changes implemented since the last election, Hornsey and Friern Barnet has been created as a new cross-borough constituency.

The changes to the electoral map have seen what was Hornsey and Wood Green lose four council wards to the new Southgate and Wood Green constituency, while gaining one each from Tottenham and Chipping Barnet (the Labour-held Friern Barnet ward) to form Hornsey and Friern Barnet.

Incumbent Catherine West, who is running again for Labour, had a majority of 19,242 (31.5%) in Hornsey and Wood Green in 2019.

The Liberal Democrats were Labour’s closest challengers in 2019 and they have selected Haringey councillor Dawn Barnes, who came second to West in 2019.

While the old Hornsey and Wood Green seat was held by the Conservative Sir Hugh Rossi until 1992 and by (now Baroness) Lynne Featherstone for the Liberal Democrats between 2005 and 2015, no surprises are expected this time round.

Haringey Community Press approached all candidates for the borough’s seats and offered them the opportunity to make a 250-word statement. The purpose of these statements is to give voters the clearest possible understanding of the perspectives of people who are asking for their support. In doing this, we acknowledge that some views expressed my cause offence and distress and apologise if this is the case.

A seventh candidate for Hornsey and Friern Barnet, Reform UK candidate Navdeep Singh, was approached for a statement but has yet to provide one.

Dawn Barnes, Liberal Democrats

As a local councillor and resident of Haringey, I want to see real change for both our country and our local area.

The Lib Dems have a strong manifesto which includes rebuilding our broken relationship with the EU and rejoining the single market, reforming our electoral system and making sure people can see a GP within seven days, or 24 hours if urgent, supported by 8,000 more GPs.

Fixing the care system is a priority. Our leader, Ed Davey, has been a carer for most of his life, first for his mother and then for his son. This set of policies comes from experience of caring: the fighting for support; the sacrifices; and the frustrations. All a carer wants is help to give their loved one the best life possible. We would provide a fair deal for carers to do this.

Addressing the housing crisis by building thousands of new homes a year, private and social, and reforming private renting – all vital in London. New homes should be well-insulated to save on energy bills and we have a 10-year plan to retrofit thousands of existing homes. Cleaning up our rivers and increasing biodiversity are among our other environmental policies, which are ranked highly with Friends of the Earth.

I work for a university and I am a local school governor so, as you can imagine, education is important to me. I look forward to being elected and being able to fix our crumbling school and college buildings.

Finally, our manifesto is the only one of the three largest parties to promise more funds for local councils, which will help my colleagues and I better serve our residents.

Naz Panju, Conservative Party

I’m Naz Panju and I am your Conservative parliamentary candidate.

I run two successful businesses – one of them that spans across 7 countries and helps educate thousands of students. I am an education expert and criminologist with a degree from the University of Cambridge.

Using this unique expertise I want to make sure businesses benefit from low taxes. Conservatives will abolish Stamp Duty for first time buyers and introduce a Help to buy scheme, pensioners will have their pensions protected under our triple lock & our borders will be secure using the Rwanda scheme.

Under a Labour MP in Hornsey and Friern Barnet, we have suffered from high crime rates, poor public services & police stations closing down.

If elected Labour will raise your taxes – corporation tax, private school tax, fuel tax, council tax are all at risk: if they’ve not ruled it out in their manifesto it’s on the table!

Catherine West decided to leave a community church hustings part way this week to watch a football match leaving several residents who forsake the game to hear from her shocked & dismayed.

Labour has taken our vote in Hornsey and Friern Barnet for granted. If it’s change you all need in Hornsey & Friern Barnet it is from the Labour mayor, Labour MP and Labour council.

I urge you not to surrender our borders, your taxes and our schools to a Labour government.

Vote for change – Naz Panju to make London safer, supporting business with lower tax and better education opportunities for all!

Dino Philippos, Workers Party

I, Dino Philippos, stand to stop our involvement with genocide in Gaza and Nato war escalation in Europe that could lead to nuclear catastrophe and wipe out the human race.

The Conservative-Labour warmongers want military conscription, more austerity, higher prices and more privatisation. Stop them! Demand peace, jobs, housing, low prices for electricity, food, water and transport! Children die in Gaza from bombs and our child-poverty is increasing!

Taxpayers’ money wasted on killing people in Gaza and Ukraine could build, equip and staff hospitals! Demand free education and end tuition fees! Demand lower tax for working people and start taxes for big companies. Fix roads and give children free school meals!

Services for elderly, disabled and vulnerable groups must be prioritised not War! Prioritise life not death! Demand all we deserve because workers create wealth and provide services yet are poorer now than 30 years ago! Vote for change!

Help defeat the parties of war and poverty! Stop the suffering by Labour and Conservative governments that abandoned our community for inequality of an unjust system. Enough is enough! Time for change!

We deserve better and will not tolerate corruption we see and lies we hear. I am not a career-politician, my roots are in community life. I will serve with responsibility for the well-being of humanity and protection of our futures. Vote for Peace & Change! on 4th July!

Statements from five other candidates: Dawn Barnes – Liberal Democrats, Naz Panju – Conservatives, Helen Spiby-Vann – Christian People’s Alliance, Fabio Vollono – Green Party and Catherine West – Labour.

Fabio Vollono, Green Party

I am standing as your Green MP candidate for Hornsey and Friern Barnet because I am passionate about democracy and giving voters the choice to vote for a greener environment and, most importantly, the existential climate crisis that we all face.

I want Hornsey, Friern Barnet and this country to have environmentally friendly, well-funded, locally controlled, public services and I will advocate nationally for policies that prioritise renewable energy and community involvement in green issues.

I have lived in the Borough of Barnet since 1968 and attended a school in Friern Barnet, so I know the area very well. As a British born European with Italian and French heritage I want us to rejoin the EU after the disaster of Brexit.

The EU has stronger environmental policies on clean waterways and air, on reduction in soil pollution and pesticides that kill our wildlife, especially invertebrates, all of which the UK government blatantly ignores.

We need to apply progressive taxes for the super rich and corporations as well as close tax loopholes. Fairer taxation will improve all aspects of society, including our crumbling infrastructures and would fund the Green energy revolution we all desperately need.

I am ready to serve and work for you as your Green Party MP, should you choose to elect me. I will advocate for renewable energy, equitable healthcare and fairer taxes. Together we can build a future that respects our planet and cares for all members of society.

Helen Spiby-Vann, Christian People’s Alliance

Wouldn’t it be great if our sons understood how heroic it is to be a good father and a devoted husband?

Sadly family breakdown wrecks lives and costs the nation about £51billion annually. Relationship breakdown is a driver of crime, domestic abuse, poor educational outcomes, child poverty and homelessness to name a few.

This is my prayer. I have been campaigning for marriage for years. Strong marriages are the foundation of a strong society.

There’s a sobering correlation between kids with absentee fathers and protracted caps on their chromosomes signaling trauma.

Christian Peoples Alliance would turn this around with a renewed moral vision. For too long, couples have enjoyed tax breaks and state benefits by remaining unmarried. We are the only party that recognizes the value of marriage to society and we have policies that incentivise couples to get married and choose to stay married.

The CPA would give a £12,000 grant upon a first marriage on condition the couple goes for 5 sessions of relationship training where they would learn how to build a resilient relationship. Conflict resolution skills and anger management also.

Then a £6,000 grant on the birth of their first child. We recognize parents come under financial pressure but as a society we value their contribution greatly.

To fund our grants we would raise £40billion on a 5% turnover tax on multinationals currently avoiding paying their fair share to the UK. We would abolish commercial rates for UK businesses. This would help stop store closures and revitalise our town centres.

Catherine West, Labour Party

After 14 years of Tory failure, our public services are at breaking point.

The highest NHS waiting lists since records began. Schools crumbling, crimes unsolved, sewage polluting our rivers and sea, and a housing crisis. It’s the only Parliament on record where living standards have fallen, leaving thousands of people in Hornsey & Friern Barnet struggling to pay their bills and children going hungry.

We can’t go on like this.

The Tories have damaged so much and during their time in office trust in politics has hit rock bottom. If they’re re-elected there will be more chaos to come. Only Labour can stop the rot and build a fairer, greener society.

In my 9 years as a Member of Parliament, I’ve held the Tories to account at every opportunity, and it was my question in the House that caught Boris Johnson out on his lockdown lies and led to his resignation.

I’ve seen the harm Tory austerity has caused to services in Hornsey & Friern Barnet, helped residents hit by the Tory cost of living crisis, pushed for rental reform, and defended our high streets. As shadow foreign minister I’ve represented Labour’s values overseas.

But to deliver the change our community needs requires a Labour government. One that will rebuild our NHS, take bold climate action, put neighbourhood police back on our streets, act so no child goes to school hungry and build 1.5 million new homes – with the biggest council house building programme in a generation.

Vote Labour on Thursday 4th July and give Britain its future back.

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